He thinks that the LB and girlfriend "might" still be alive if there was more gun control. Thoughts? My thoughts are that he is an idiot. He would have beated her silly with a baseball bat or stabbed her to death. Maybe ran over her with his car, hit her with a hammer. Maybe a chainsaw. Shovel? Ice pick. The list goes on and on. Here in Tampa someone jumped of the skyway bridge yesterday and died. With Costas logic, if that bridge wasn't there that guy would still be alive. We don't need more control, there is already laws on not murdering someone. What we need is people to be resposible for their actions. Criminals will always find away to get guns. Felons aren't allowed to own guns, but yet, they have them. Look at drugs.

He thinks that the LB and girlfriend "might" still be alive if there was more gun control. Thoughts?

When celebrities live in little vacuums its easy for them to fire out comments. Human beings aren't robots who all think alike and are open to reason. If they were this wouldn't be such a dangerous world.

He would have beated her silly with a baseball bat or stabbed her to death. Maybe ran over her with his car, hit her with a hammer. Maybe a chainsaw. Shovel? Ice pick. The list goes on and on..

Not agreeing or disagreeing with the premise, but I don't like that argument.

It's a lot easier to pull a trigger than beat the crap out of a person until they stop breathing.

I know this is a weak analogy, but it's a lot easier to fill up the tank with a credit card than it is with cash.

I don't know whether they'd still be a live. Could very well be. Could very well be that he did kill her and himself a different way. But the gun created a really easy option available to him to do so.

And regardless of the specific situation, I think an argument could be made that there have been a lot of deaths as a result of situations similar to this one, where the victim(s) wouldn't have died otherwise. Whether that number outweighs the safety a gun provides against those who obtain them illegally, like you guys are saying, is debatable though.

He thinks that the LB and girlfriend "might" still be alive if there was more gun control. Thoughts? My thoughts are that he is an idiot. He would have beated her silly with a baseball bat or stabbed her to death."

According to your post, Costas said they "might" still be alive if a gun wasn't involved. That is a valid argument. Do guns make killing a person easier? Yes. To deny that guns make murders easier and more likely is burying your head in the sand. Perhaps they would both still be dead, we don't know. Saying "might" includes that possiblity.

You on the other hand said, "He would have." No grey area there. You don't know that. You are not in his head. So after taking a look at both sides, it is your position that is harder to justify.

Seeing as how the media only reports on incidents in which a gunman murdered people, and barely reports on the stories in which a person with a gun defended themselves or others, it's no mystery why so many uninformed people believe gun control is the answer.

Seeing as how the media only reports on incidents in which a gunman murdered people, and barely reports on the stories in which a person with a gun defended themselves or others, it's no mystery why so many uninformed people believe gun control is the answer.

Add to that a gun is an easier way to kill someone....poison them is alot easier.

The kid tried to purchase a rifle and was denied. The system actually worked in that instance.

I don't have any answer for the overall problem. I still can't wrap my head around what happened.

Actually, Connecticut doesn't allow ownership of a gun until you're 21. He was 20.

So he obtained the guns illegally.

How could preventing people from obtaining guns legally have prevented this if he obtained them illegally?

I'm with you completely. I think this kid would have found a way regardless of the obstacles.

I don't think people should pretend to have definitive answers on how to stop gun violence, or at least I'm not going to claim I do. I'm on the path to getting a permit myself because I'm not putting myself at a disadvantage if I have to protect my family.

So if we implement gun control to inhibit the ability to obtain guns legally, how is that going to prevent those who are obtaining them illegally from obtaining them?

How are most of the guns we're seeing in these shootings being obtained?

How does a 20 year old obtain an AR15? Is it legally?

My statement is a broad point that I stand by.

Your question splits the issue into a very specific detail. Yes, he didn't legally obtain it. He got this from his mother, right? I would answer that that gun should banned. I'd also ban any type of high capacity magazine. Some of the victims were shot 11 times. I believe that the Aurora shooter also had some type of high capacity clip.

You're missing a parallel here besides these being crimes committed with guns.

All of these shooters are or have been on some sort of medication. Either they are on it and come off it, or they take too much and go nuts.

I think the bigger root cause here is mental health. What are the mental health specialists in this country really doing to solve patient problems? They just dose them up on drugs that mask symptoms but have dangerous long-term side effects, and the more drugs they prescribe, the bigger the prize.

Criminals are going to get guns, whether you ban them or not. If they are choosing to murder, what are they going to care about breaking a gun law? That is not the solution. That would not have prevented Columbine or Aurora.

Case and point, South Africa. The process to legally obtain a gun in South Africa is far stricter than in the U.S. Sometimes you have to wait up to two years to obtain a gun. And yet the rate of murder with firearms is 340% higher and the highest in the world.

Colombia is another country with strict gun laws. All guns are manufactured by the government and only small arms are allowed. Entire cities, such as Bogota, have even banned guns.

The murder rate with guns is the second highest in the world.

Same in Thailand in regards to small arms and the registration process is strenuous.

Three examples of countries with stricter gun laws and a much higher murder rate through the use of guns.

The fact of the matter is that while the United States has the highest gun ownership rate in the world, the rate of homicides with guns is lower than Uruguay, Panama, Paraguay, Mexico, Guyana, Guatemala, South Africa, Venezuela, Belize, Argentina, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Brazil, Barbados, Nicaragua, Honduras, Colombia, Salvador, Bahamas, Dominican Republic, Phillipines, Zimbabwe, Israel, Ecuador... I could go on and on.

And take a wild guess who is generally obtaining guns in these mostly third world countries and committing these crimes.

Criminals.

Despite stricter gun laws, criminals are getting the guns and victims are defenseless to do anything about it except take a bullet to the head.

If not his mom's guns it would have been someone else's. The point is that banning guns is not going to prevent these things from happening, it is just going to prevent law abiding citizens from obtaining protection from criminals.

Add Chicago Rich to the long list of States with gun control and the gun violence there is off the charts. Russia is another country with strict gun laws yet gun violence is rampent over here. One hi cap of 17 rds or 3 mags of 10rds, does it make a difference when killing kids? Thomas Jefferson said "the moment you give up liberties for the sake of secruity you don't desesrve liberty". Washington said "the right to bear arms is a freedom from the tyranny of gov't". Anti-gunners here and every where else, get you heads out of your a$$es.

"Laws that forbid the carrying of arms disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes. Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants; they serve rather to encourage than to prevent homicides, for an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man."Thomas Jefferson

"I ask sir, what is the militia? It is the whole body of the people except for a few public officials. To disarm the people is the best and most effectual way to enslave them..." George Mason (1725-1792), drafted the Virginia Declaration of Rights, ally of James Madison and George Washington

"Self defense is a primary law of nature, which no subsequent law of society can abolish; the immediate gift of the Creator, obliges everyone … to resist the first approaches of tyranny."Elbridge Gerry (1744-1814) 5th Vice President under Madison, Massachusetts Governor, U.S. House Rep and U.S. Senator.

Boys and girls, the above (2) quotes are from our four fathers. If you believe the Gov't will protect you, you guys are out of your minds. Felons have tec-9s, FEMA wasn't there for Katrina and looting and riots happened. Here is a statement from the San Bernidino police dept/sherrif. "Citizens, buy yourself a gun and lock your doors, we our out of money to protect you". If you think it's paranoid that the gov't wants to disarm you, then you are delisional. Eric Holder said it best " never let a good crisi go to waste". You think Feinstein really cares about kids? She has been wanting to ban guns for her entire career even though she has a permit to carry cause she is a VIP. please....to my kids I'm a VIP so her life is no more important than mine. Wake up people.

Man when I heard this news I was heart broken. Having twin girls in the second grade I could not imagine what those families are going thru. Instinctively I also looked at the list of the names & hoped I did not see more than one with the same last name. I really dont know what the answer is. I truly believe these shooters are evil & would find a way to do these things no matter what the laws were. I am not a gun owner but am considering becoming one. if I decide to do so I will first take a course on guns , caring , firing , storing etc. Because I believe responsible people should be able to own a gun. Maybe I am naive however into thinking why do you need those magazines or clips (if that is what they are called) that fire multiple shots in a matter of seconds.

Maybe I am naive however into thinking why do you need those magazines or clips (if that is what they are called) that fire multiple shots in a matter of seconds.

At least you are willing to learn Mitch and I can respect that. The only difference between a 30 rd magazine and 3 ten rd magazines is appx 2 seconds. The magazines change out very quickly. COlumbine happened is the middle of the assult weapon ban that went from 94-04. Timothy Mcvay (sp?) killed 19 children with fertilizer and diesal fuel. 19 terrorists killed thousands of americans using airplanes....no guns were used, This is a political ploy to disarm america and take more freedoms from us.